Lesson Four: Master ISO

The ISO that you set and decide to use determines the amount of noise let into the photo you are about to take.  If you are using a higher ISO setting then when you are taking the photo the light sensors will amplify the amount of light being allowed to come in and this will create a grainy noisy quality to the photo.  However, just like all of the other settings we have learned about and discussed thus far, when used correctly ISO can make a big difference in the photo you are going to take.  Let’s talk about the different settings.  Typically the “normal” or standard setting on a camera is an ISO of 100.  This lower setting allows you to take photos outside in the bright sunlight without too much light being taken in so you won’t have a grainy noisy picture.  If you know that you are going to be spending the day outside at the beach or at the park then you will want to make sure your camera is set to and ISO setting from 200-400.  These settings are the optimal settings for taking pictures in bright light situations.  These settings block out the excess light giving you a clean rain/noise free picture.  Next is an ISO of 800.  This setting you will have to be careful with.  It is a good setting to have and use when you will be taking action shots or are taking photos inside where it is not well lit, however if you are using this setting on a compact camera then you need to be extra careful with your shots.  A compact camera and this setting mixed together will cause noise to be visible within the photo.  This is a useful setting however because it give you a decent exposure setting while allowing you to use a faster shutter speed for action shots.  Maybe you are snapping a photo of you kid sliding into home plate with the game winning run...this setting will help you capture that moment that much better.   There are three more ISO settings to discuss.  First is ISO 1600.  When you get to settings this big it becomes very difficult (and for most cameras almost impossible) to avoid noise in the pictures.  This setting will especially show noise if you are focusing abd zooming in on areas that have a lot of shadows or contrast.  Our last two ISO settings are ISO 3200 and ISO 6400.  Both of these settings are found on high end DSLR cameras and only the best ones will provide you with some sort of useable picture.  ISO 6400 is extremely rare and the few cameras with this setting will still provide pictures that have visible noise in them.